Pressed metal roadster body



Feb. 16, 1932. J. LEDWINKA PRESSED METAL ROADSTER BODY Original FiledJan. 9, 1926 I JOSEPH LEDWINKA f F A TTORNEY.

Patented Feb. 16, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT orl-lca JOSEPH BUDDMANUFACTURING COMPANY, 01! PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A 003- PORA'I'IONOI PENNSYLVANIA DRESSED METAL BOADBTEB BODY Original application filedJanuary 8, 1926, Serial No. 80,862, and in Canada January 7, 1927.Divided and this application iiled March 27, 1981. Serial No. 525,857.

The type of body in which I have embodied my invention is a roadster. Ofcourse, it is immediately adaptable to coups, and, with more or lessmodification, is without doubt adaptable, in some parts at least, toother types of bodies.

This application is a division of my application Serial No. 80,362,filed January 9, 1926, for pressed metal roadster body.

It is a prime object of my'invention to simplify and generally improvethe construction of such bodies, particularly in the re ions of the doorposts and I attain this ob ect in the relative arrangement andconformationof the door posts and the .adj acent panels rigidly 'oinedthereto to permit facility in assem ly and joinder, as by spot welding,and after assembly to lighten the construction while retaining greatstrength and durability, to provide accuracy of door fits etc.

(ither objects and advantages will appear with the description of thedetailed construction in the following specification when read inconnection with the drawings forming a part hereof.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a roadster body embodying the invention,parts being broken away adjacent the door posts to show the interiorconstruction.

Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5 are detail sectional Views taken, respectively, onthe correspondingly numbered lines of Fig. 1. v

The main framing of the body according to the invention includes bodyside sills 10 extending through and beyond the thresholds of the doors,and body posts 11 and 12 erected on said sills at opposite sides of adoorway opening therein. These posts are made of sheet metal stampingsrigidly joined to the sills 10 and to the sheet metal paneling designated generally by numeral 13 forming the outer shell contoured to theform of the body, as by spot welding, whereby in the final assembly theposts and paneling mutually reinforce each other to serve as combinedunitary body framing and shell.

The front door post 11-is of angle cross section facing outwardly andforwardly, its

transversely extending arm 14. forming the jamb face of the doorwayopening and its other arm 15 extendin forwardly into the cowl. To form asmool joint the outer edge of the arm 14 is formed with a shallowforwardly extending edge flange 16. This angular post construction lendsitself readily to strong and neat securement of the post to at least twofaces of the sill. It lends itself also to the ready and neat assemblyof the post to the adjacent cowl anel designated in the drawings by there erence numeral 17.

The rear edge of the cowl paneling is formed with an inturned flange 18which is lapped on the inner face of the outwardly extending branch 14of the post as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

The apex of the angle between the cowl panel flange 18 and the body ofthe panel 17 is re-entrantly bent as at 19 to provide a rabbet for theoverlap of the door. The flange 16 of the post is seated in this rabbet,thus providing a nesting relation between the post and panel andconcealing the raw edge of the post inthe rabbet.

. The parts soassemoled are readily brought together in assembly andspot welded together through the ready access afforded through the openfront side of the post 11, being welded both between the flange 18 andthe post arm 14 and between the inner wall of the rabbet 19 and the postflange 16. The combined post and panel structure so rigidly joinedtogether provides a very strong yet light construction at the edge ofthe doorway opening, where the body is subjected to the strain ofopening and closing the door, and forms an accurate fit with theadjacent edge of a door. The formation of the rabbet in the panelfacilitates its formation, since the panel is ordinarily of lightergauge than the post. Through the flange 15 pro ecting forwardly into thecowl post may readily be joined to braces extending forwardly into thecowl, such as the windshield stanchion support and brace indicated at20.

a structure not entering into the present invention, and need not befurther described. The rear door post 12, where the door is This supportand the door hinges 21 are of ordinarily formed with a rabbeted jambface in addition to the edge overlap, is formed with a correspondingrabbet 22 in its transverse 'am b face portion 23. This gives to therear oor ost a generally rearwardly presentingang section similar to thefront door post only the depth of this rabbet makes the section of thepost more nearly channel-shape than angle section. Qtherwise, this postconstruction is very similar to the front post, being formed with aninner longitudinally extending arm and a narrow outer flange 25. Theadjacent panel 26 is formed at its front ed with an inwardly extendingflange 27 an a rabbet 28 in all res ects similar to the flange 18 andrabbet 19 o the front ost and similarly nested with the post, an rigldlysecured by spot welding through the outer ofl'set portion of the postjamb face portion 23 and flange 27 and through the post flange 25 andthe inner wall of the rabbet 28.

The part 29 represents a post attachment forming a reinforce in the reions where such parts as the buffers and stri er for the lock aremounted. Since this forms no part of this invention, a mere reference toit will suflice.

At 30 is represented a gusset plate formm a reinforcement between thepost and the a jacent top mar in of the panel 26. The forward edge ofthis usset plate is angular in form as shown in ig. 5 and nests and issecured within the an le formed by the flange 27 and the inner wa panel28.

What I claim is:

.1. In a pressed metal automobile structure com rising a verticallyextending post of an e cross section facing outwardly, together wit anexterior panel having an inturned flange housed within said post andhaving an inturned flange connected with the outturned branch of theangle section thereof.

2. A pressed metal automobile bod comprising a vertically extending postof angle cross section facing outwardly and having its outwardlyextending'branch flanged inwardly of the ost structure, together with anexterior y panel housed within the post and having an inturned-flangenested interiorlv of the an 1c of the flanged outwardly extending brancof the post.

3. A pressed metal automobile bod comprising a vertically extending postof angle cross section facing outwardly and having its outwardlyextending branch flanged inwardly of the ost structure, together with anex terior y panel housed within the post and having an inturned flannested interiorl of the angle of the flanged outwardly extend: ingbranch of the post, which panel is rabbeted to form a lie-entrant bendat the flange in which the flange of the post is engaged.

A pressed metal automobile body comprising a body post of channel crosssection of the rabbet 28 of the one side wall of which is rovided with areversely bent re-entrant sage, and a sheet metlal panel nested in thereverse bend of m 5. In a' pressed metal automobile bod a body post ofchannel cross section resen ing longitudinally of the body and aving itsouter side wall provided with an outwardly extending reversely bentflange together with a body panel nested with the reverse bend of theflange.

6. In a pressed metal automobile body, a body post of channel crosssection presenting longitudinally of the body and aving its outersidewall provided with an outwardly extending reversely bent flantogether with-a body anel connected with the post, and a brace or saidpanel nested upon the reversely bent flange of the post.

7. In a pressed metal automobile body, a body post of channel crosssection resenting longitudinally of the body and aving its outer sidewall provided with an outwardly extending reversely bent flange,together with a body panel nested upon the reverse bend of the flange,which body panel is offset outwardly to form a rabbet adjacent the ed eof said reversely bent flange.

n testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature.

JOSEPH LEDWINKA.

